Biomass Week - March 11, 2011

Oregon's last coal plant evaluating biomass Portland General Electric, the last coal-fired power plant in Oregon, is evaluating arundo donax as a potential biomass fuel. New rules adopted by the state last year require the plant to cease burning coal or close down by the end of 2020. READ MORE SHARE
Conifex plans to build biomass plant in BC Conifex Timber Inc. is planning to build a $45 million biomass energy project at the site of two of its sawmills in Mackenzie, British Columbia. Conifex acquired the two sawmills from DTR Wood Ltd. in June, and has since been upgrading them. READ MORE SHARE
	ASABE revises biomass standard The ASABE has revised its standard on biomass terminology and definitions. Revisions were made based on feedback from users and intensified government interest and mandates regarding the production of bioenergy, biopower and bioproducts from biomass. READ MORE SHARE
Texas biomass power plant moving forward A 50-megawatt woody biomass power plant planned near Woodville in eastern Texas has received permission from the board of the East Texas Electric Co-op, which is building the Woodville Renewable Power Project, to move forward with development. READ MORE SHARE
Mitigating fuel cost risk for biomass plants Fuel cost is a very real component of any biomass project and with ever-changing prices, developers and investors are confronted with the task of managing cost risk to keep projects afloat, or even obtain enough funding to get them off the ground. READ MORE SHARE
New biomass pellet binder from Nu Materials A new organic binder by Indiana-based engineered fuels company Nu Materials makes biomass fuel pellets resistant to moisture, resulting in savings in transportation, handling and operations, according to the company. READ MORE SHARE
Book details wood-to-energy viability in the South The Southern U.S. is a prime location for producing woody biomass because of an already abundant wood supply, the proximity of forests to expanding urban areas and relatively low production costs, according to a USDA Forest Service publication. READ MORE SHARE
Report: North American wood pellet exports double Wood pellet exports from the U.S. and Canada to Europe have doubled in the past two years, with 1.6 million tons of wood pellets shipped from the two countries to the Netherlands, U.K. and Belgium in 2010, according to Wood Resources International. READ MORE SHARE
Manitoba researchers convert cattails into pellets University of Manitoba researchers, while working on a project to restore health to Canada's Lake Winnipeg, discovered that turning cattails into fuel pellets is an efficient way to keep unwanted nutrients out of the lake and produce renewable fuel. READ MORE SHARE
BTEC webinar to address IB MACT, control questions The Biomass Thermal Energy Council will host a webinar titled "Biomass Air Quality: Measuring, Controlling, and Regulating Emissions" to address specific questions related to air emissions, MACT and control technologies for thermal applications. READ MORE SHARE
Canadian company building AD demonstration facility Ontario-based Carbon Control Systems Inc. is building a 100-kilowatt on-farm anaerobic digester near Toronto as a model to show farmers how the technology works and to demonstrate the advantages of the small-scale systems. READ MORE SHARE